Book of Common Prayer
V
33 [a]God changed rivers into desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,(A)
34 Fruitful land into a salty waste,
because of the wickedness of its people.(B)
35 He changed the desert into pools of water,
arid land into springs of water,(C)
36 And settled the hungry there;
they built a city to live in.(D)
37 They sowed fields and planted vineyards,
brought in an abundant harvest.(E)
38 (F)God blessed them, and they increased greatly,
and their livestock did not decrease.(G)
39 But he poured out contempt on princes,
made them wander trackless wastes,
40 Where they were diminished and brought low
through misery and cruel oppression.
41 While he released the poor man from affliction,
and increased their families like flocks.(H)
42 The upright saw this and rejoiced;(I)
all wickedness shut its mouth.
43 Whoever is wise will take note of these things,(J)
and ponder the merciful deeds of the Lord.
Psalm 108[b]
Prayer for Victory
1 A song; a psalm of David.
I
2 My heart is steadfast, God;(K)
my heart is steadfast.
Let me sing and chant praise.
3 Awake, lyre and harp!
I will wake the dawn.(L)
4 I will praise you among the peoples, Lord;
I will chant your praise among the nations.(M)
5 For your mercy is greater than the heavens;
your faithfulness, to the skies.(N)
II
6 Appear on high over the heavens, God;
your glory above all the earth.
7 Help with your right hand and answer us
that your loved ones may escape.
8 God speaks in his holiness:[c](O)
“I will exult, I will apportion Shechem;
the valley of Succoth I will measure out.
9 Gilead is mine, mine is Manasseh;
Ephraim is the helmet for my head,
Judah, my scepter.
10 Moab is my washbowl;
upon Edom I cast my sandal;(P)
I will shout in triumph over Philistia.”
11 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me into Edom?
12 Was it not you who rejected us, God?
Do you no longer march with our armies?(Q)
13 Give us aid against the foe;
worthless is human help.
Psalm 33[a]
Praise of God’s Power and Providence
I
1 Rejoice, you righteous, in the Lord;
praise from the upright is fitting.(A)
2 Give thanks to the Lord on the harp;
on the ten-stringed lyre offer praise.(B)
3 Sing to him a new song;
skillfully play with joyful chant.
4 For the Lord’s word is upright;
all his works are trustworthy.
5 He loves justice and right.
The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord.(C)
II
6 By the Lord’s word the heavens were made;
by the breath of his mouth all their host.[b](D)
7 [c]He gathered the waters of the sea as a mound;
he sets the deep into storage vaults.(E)
III
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all who dwell in the world show him reverence.
9 For he spoke, and it came to be,
commanded, and it stood in place.(F)
10 The Lord foils the plan of nations,
frustrates the designs of peoples.
11 But the plan of the Lord stands forever,
the designs of his heart through all generations.(G)
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people chosen as his inheritance.(H)
IV
13 From heaven the Lord looks down
and observes the children of Adam,(I)
14 From his dwelling place he surveys
all who dwell on earth.
15 The One who fashioned together their hearts
is the One who knows all their works.
V
16 A king is not saved by a great army,
nor a warrior delivered by great strength.
17 Useless is the horse for safety;
despite its great strength, it cannot be saved.
18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him,
upon those who count on his mercy,
19 To deliver their soul from death,
and to keep them alive through famine.
VI
20 Our soul waits for the Lord,
he is our help and shield.(J)
21 For in him our hearts rejoice;
in his holy name we trust.
22 May your mercy, Lord, be upon us;
as we put our hope in you.
The False Prophets[a]
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart is broken within me,
all my bones tremble;
I am like a drunk,
like one overcome by wine,
Because of the Lord,
because of his holy words.
10 The land is filled with adulterers;
because of the curse the land mourns,
the pastures of the wilderness are withered.(A)
Theirs is an evil course,
theirs is unjust power.
11 Both prophet and priest are godless!
In my very house I find their wickedness—
oracle of the Lord.(B)
12 Hence their way shall become for them
slippery ground.
Into the darkness they shall be driven,
and fall headlong;
For I will bring disaster upon them,
the year of their punishment—oracle of the Lord.(C)
13 Among Samaria’s prophets
I saw something unseemly:
They prophesied by Baal
and led my people Israel astray.(D)
14 But among Jerusalem’s prophets
I saw something more shocking:
Adultery, walking in deception,[b]
strengthening the power of the wicked,
so that no one turns from evil;
To me they are all like Sodom,
its inhabitants like Gomorrah.(E)
15 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts against the prophets:
Look, I will give them wormwood to eat,
and poisoned water to drink;
For from Jerusalem’s prophets
ungodliness has gone forth into the whole land.(F)
V. Jews and Gentiles in God’s Plan[a]
Chapter 9
Paul’s Love for Israel.[b] 1 I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie; my conscience joins with the holy Spirit in bearing me witness(A) 2 that I have great sorrow and constant anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and separated from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kin according to the flesh.(B) 4 They are Israelites; theirs the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises;(C) 5 theirs the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, is the Messiah. God who is over all[c] be blessed forever. Amen.(D)
God’s Free Choice. 6 But it is not that the word of God has failed. For not all who are of Israel are Israel,(E) 7 nor are they all children of Abraham because they are his descendants; but “It is through Isaac that descendants shall bear your name.”(F) 8 This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as descendants.(G) 9 For this is the wording of the promise, “About this time I shall return and Sarah will have a son.”(H) 10 And not only that,(I) but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one husband, our father Isaac[d]— 11 before they had yet been born or had done anything, good or bad, in order that God’s elective plan might continue, 12 not by works but by his call—she was told, “The older shall serve the younger.”(J) 13 As it is written:(K)
“I loved Jacob
but hated Esau.”[e]
14 [f]What then are we to say? Is there injustice on the part of God? Of course not!(L) 15 For he says to Moses:
“I will show mercy to whom I will,
I will take pity on whom I will.”(M)
16 So it depends not upon a person’s will or exertion, but upon God, who shows mercy.(N) 17 For the scripture says to Pharaoh, “This is why I have raised you up, to show my power through you that my name may be proclaimed throughout the earth.”(O) 18 Consequently, he has mercy upon whom he wills,(P) and he hardens whom he wills.[g]
60 Then many of his disciples who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” 61 Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you? 62 What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?[a] 63 It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh[b] is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him.(A) 65 And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father.”
66 As a result of this, many [of] his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. 67 Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”(B) 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you twelve? Yet is not one of you a devil?” 71 He was referring to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot; it was he who would betray him, one of the Twelve.(C)
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